Cell search and connection procedures in a cellular communication device

ABSTRACT

A cell-search method for a cellular communication device capable of communicating via a first radio-access technology, RAT, in a first frequency band, and via a second RAT in a second frequency band, which is in a higher frequency region than the first frequency band is disclosed. The method comprises performing a first cell search in the first frequency band in order to detect a first cell of the first RAT. The method further comprises, if such a first cell is detected, synchronizing to the first cell, without registering to the first cell, determining a reference frequency error estimate between a local reference frequency of the cellular communication device and reference frequency of the first cell, and thereafter performing a second cell search, based on the reference frequency error estimate, in the second frequency band to detect a second cell of the second RAT. A corresponding cellular communication device, computer program product, and computer-readable medium are also disclosed.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to cell-search procedures in a cellularcommunication network.

BACKGROUND

Further evolution of cellular communication systems, such as what issometimes referred to as 5th generation (5G) cellular communicationsystems, will typically require bitrate performance in the order of Gb/sand signal frequency bandwidths in the order of 100 MHz in the downlink.For comparison, the maximum signal bandwidth (for a single componentcarrier) in a current 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Program) LTE(Long Term Evolution) cellular communication system is 20 MHz, i.e. afactor 5 lower. In order to find such free bandwidths, the carrierfrequency may need to increase a factor 10-20 above the current (radiofrequency, RF) carrier frequencies used in present 2nd, 3rd, and 4thgeneration (2G, 3G or 4G) cellular communications systems, which arenormally in the range 1-3 GHz.

Normally, low cost and low power consumption is desirable for cellularcommunication devices. At the same time, there is also a desire forcellular communication devices to be capable of operating in multipleradio access technologies (RATs). A device having such multi-RATfunctionality is in the following referred to as a multi-RAT device. Forexample, a 4G device is nominally also support operation in 2G and 3Gcommunications systems. A reason for this is the gradual deployment ofnew RATs, whereby the use of a single new RAT is limiting from an enduser perspective. Therefore, it is likely that new devices in the nearfuture, supporting a 5G cellular system, also need to support legacysystems, such as one or more of 20, 30, and 4G systems.

A reference clock signal to a radio transceiver circuit of a cellularcommunication device can be provided by a crystal oscillator. Thecrystal oscillator can for example be designed to operate at 26 MHz, andbe driven by a low-cost 32 kHz reference clock-signal generator. Inorder to meet constraints of low cost and low power, a certain degree ofinaccuracy of the crystal oscillator must normally be accepted. The openloop uncertainty (maximum deviation from a nominal value) of the crystaloscillator frequency may be in the order of 10-15 ppm. Hence, once acellular communication device is powered on, there is an uncertaintywith respect to the reference frequency in the device, which needs to behandled by the device during an initial cell search process when thedevice searches for a cell to synchronize with.

In a 2G system, such as a GSM (Global System for Mobile communications)system, for which the carrier frequency is slightly below 1 GHz, thefrequency uncertainty at power up of the cellular communication devicecan be in the order of 10-15 kHz. The FCCH (Frequency CorrectionCHannel) burst in GSM, which is a 67.7 kHz signal, is typically tolerantto frequency errors in that order, and typically no specific measuresneed to be taken during the initial cell search due to the inaccuracy ofthe crystal oscillator.

However, in a 3G system, such as a UMTS (Universal MobileTelecommunications System) system, or a 4G system, such as an LTE (LongTerm Evolution) system, which typically operates with carrierfrequencies around 2-3 GHz, the frequency uncertainty at power up of thecellular communication device can be in the order of 20-45 kHz. At thesame time, the PSCH/SSCH (Primary Synchronization CHannel/SecondarySynchronization CHannel) in a UMTS system and the PSS/SSS (PrimarySynchronization Signal/Secondary Synchronization Signal) in an LTEsystem are typically robust for frequency errors up to 3-4 kHz. Forthese types of systems, so called frequency gridding can be used for theinitial cell search. A frequency-gridding procedure is outlined in thefollowing.

The actual carrier frequency of the (RF) carrier is in the followingreferred to as the nominal carrier frequency. With a zero frequencyerror in the cellular communication device, it appears to the cellularcommunication device that the carrier is actually located (in frequency)at this nominal carrier frequency. If, however, there is a non-zerofrequency error in the cellular communication device, it appears to thecellular communication device that the carrier is located (in frequency)at some other carrier frequency. When frequency gridding is performed,the cellular communication device hypothesizes a number of such othercarrier frequencies. Thereby, a set of hypothesized carrier frequencies,which may include also the nominal carrier frequency, is obtained aroundthe nominal carrier frequency. The cellular communication device thenperforms a search on the hypothesized carrier frequencies until thecarrier is detected. Detecting the carrier may e.g. mean detecting asynchronization channel (such as the FCCH in GSM or PSCH/SSCH in UMTS)or a synchronization signal (such as the PSS/SSS in LTE) modulated ontothe carrier. Based on knowledge of the actual carrier frequency and thehypothesized carrier frequency on which the carrier was detected, thecellular communication device can then estimate the frequency error inthe cellular communication device and take corrective measures in orderto synchronize the reference frequency in the cellular communicationdevice with the reference frequency of the cellular communicationnetwork.

In 3G and 4G systems, typically around 5-6 grid points are needed inorder to reliably detect the PSCH/SSCH and PSS/SSS, respectively.

SUMMARY

The inventors have realized that for upcoming 5G cellular communicationssystems, or other systems expected to operate on carrier frequenciesaround 10-30 GHz, the initial frequency error may be up to 200-300 kHzat a 30 GHz carrier frequency. Furthermore, assuming that the samplerate may be approximately 5 times that of LTE, the synchronizationsignal design for such systems may only be robust to frequency errorsaround 5 times the LTE case, or 15-20 kHz. Hence, using a the frequencygridding approach as outlined above, the search grid would have to besignificantly increased, compared with LTE, in order to detect andregister to a cell in such a system. The inventors have thereforerealized that there is a need for an alternative cell-search approach.Embodiments of the present invention are based on the inventors' insightthat the required search grid can be reduced by first synchronizing to acell of another RAT in a lower frequency region, thereby reducing theuncertainty of the internal reference frequency of a cellularcommunication device.

According to a first aspect, there is provided a cell-search method fora cellular communication device capable of communicating via a firstradio-access technology (RAT) in a first frequency band, and via asecond RAT in a second frequency band, which is in a higher frequencyregion than the first frequency band. The method comprises performing afirst cell search in the first frequency band in order to detect a firstcell of the first RAT. Furthermore, the method comprises, if such afirst cell is detected, synchronizing to the first cell withoutregistering to the first cell, determining a reference frequency errorestimate between a local reference frequency of the cellularcommunication device and reference frequency of the first cell, andthereafter performing a second cell search, based on the referencefrequency error estimate, in the second frequency band to detect asecond cell of the second RAT.

Performing the second cell search may comprise searching a frequencygrid of a set of hypothesized carrier frequencies, wherein the frequencylocation of said frequency grid is based on the reference frequencyerror estimate. The frequency location of said frequency grid may alsobe based on the relative frequency location of the first frequency bandand the second frequency band.

The method may further comprise, if such a first cell in the firstfrequency band is not detected, performing a second cell search, basedon a default reference frequency error estimate, in the second frequencyband to detect a second cell of the second RAT.

According to some embodiments, the first frequency band is located below4 GHz and the second frequency band is located above 10 GHz.

The first RAT may be any of a 2nd generation (20) cellular communicationRAT, a 3rd generation (3G) cellular communication RAT, and a 4thgeneration (4G) cellular communication RAT.

The second RAT may e.g. be a 5th generation (5G) cellular communicationRAT.

According to a second aspect, there is provided a method for saidcellular communication device of connecting to a cell of the second RAT,The method comprises performing the cell-search method according to thefirst aspect, and, if said second cell is detected, registering with thesecond cell.

According to a third aspect, there is provided a cellular communicationdevice capable of communicating via a first radio-access technology(RAT) in a first frequency band and via a second RAT in a secondfrequency band, which is in a higher frequency region than the firstfrequency band. The cellular communication device comprises a controlunit. The control unit is adapted to perform a first cell search in thefirst frequency band in order to detect a first cell of the first RAT.Furthermore, the control unit is adapted to, if such a first cell isdetected, synchronize to the first cell, without registering to thefirst cell, determine a reference frequency error estimate between alocal reference frequency of the cellular communication device and areference frequency of the first cell, and thereafter perform a secondcell search, based on the reference frequency error estimate, in thesecond frequency band to detect a second cell of the second RAT.

The control unit may be adapted to, in order to perform the second cellsearch, search a frequency grid of a set of hypothesized carrierfrequencies, wherein the frequency location of said frequency grid isbased on the estimated reference frequency error. The frequency locationof said frequency grid may also be based on the relative frequencylocation of the first frequency band and the second frequency band.

The control unit may be adapted to, if such a first cell in the firstfrequency band is not detected, perform a second cell search, based on adefault reference frequency error estimate, in the second frequency bandto detect a second cell of the second RAT.

According to some embodiments, the first frequency band is located below4 GHz and the second frequency band is located above 10 GHz.

The first RAT may be any of a 2nd generation (2G) cellular communicationRAT, a 3rd generation (30) cellular communication RAT, and a 4thgeneration (40) cellular communication RAT.

The second RAT may e.g. be a 5th generation (5G) cellular communicationRAT.

The control unit may be adapted to, if said second cell is detected,register the cellular communication device with the second cell.

According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a computer programproduct comprising computer program code for executing the methodaccording to any of the first and the second aspect when said computerprogram code is executed by a programmable control unit of the cellularcommunication device.

According to a fifth aspect, there is provided a computer readablemedium having stored thereon a computer program product comprisingcomputer program code for executing the method according to any of thefirst and the second aspect when said computer program code is executedby a programmable control unit of the cellular communication device.

Further embodiments are defined in the dependent claims. It should beemphasized that the term “comprises/comprising” when used in thisspecification is taken to specify the presence of stated features,integers, steps, or components, but does not preclude the presence oraddition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components, orgroups thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further objects, features and advantages of embodiments of the inventionwill appear from the following detailed description, reference beingmade to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a cellular communication environment;

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of a cellular communication deviceaccording to embodiments;

FIGS. 3-4 are flowcharts for methods according to embodiments;

FIG. 5 illustrates a control unit according to an embodiment; and

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates a computer-readable medium and aprogrammable control unit.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 illustrates an environment in which embodiments of the presentinvention may be employed. A cellular communication device 1 is incoverage of a first cell 2 and a second cell 5. The cellularcommunication device is illustrated in FIG. 1 as a mobile telephone.However, this is only an example, the cellular communication device maybe any type of device capable of communicating over a cellularcommunication network, including computers, such as a portable computeror tablet computer, equipped with a cellular modem, or machine-typecommunication devices, such as sensors etc. equipped with a cellularmodem.

The first cell 2 is illustrated in FIG. 1 as being served by a firstbase station 3. The second cell 5 is illustrated in FIG. 1 as beingserved by a second base station 6. In the example of FIG. 1, the firstcell 2 is a cell of a first radio-access technology (RAT) operating in afirst frequency band 4. Furthermore, the second cell 5 is a cell of asecond RAT operating in a second frequency band 7, which is in a higherfrequency region than the first frequency band 4. This is illustrated inFIG. 1, where the first frequency band 4 is located below a frequencyf1, and the second frequency band is located above a frequency f2, wheref2>f1. According to an example used throughout this detaileddescription, the frequency f1 can e.g. be 4 GHz, and the frequency f2can e.g. be 10 GHz. The first RAT may e.g. be any of a 2nd generation(2G) cellular communication RAT, a 3rd generation (3G) cellularcommunication RAT, and a 4th generation (4G) cellular communication RAT.Furthermore, the second RAT may e.g. be a 5th generation (5G) cellularcommunication RAT. Alternative network configurations may include thosewhere cells 2 and 5 cover overlapping areas and are served from the samebase station.

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of the cellular communicationdevice 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In theembodiment shown in FIG. 1, the cellular communication device 1comprises a transceiver unit 10. The transceiver unit 10 may e.g.comprise a transmitter arranged to transmit signals to a cellularcommunication network and a receiver arranged to receive signals from acellular communication network. The receiver may e.g. comprise one ormore analog and/or digital filters, low-noise amplifiers, mixers, and/orother circuitry for receiving a radio-frequency (RF) signal andconverting it to a lower-frequency signal, such as a baseband signal.Furthermore, the receiver may comprise one or more analog-to-digitalconverters (ADCs) for converting the lower-frequency signal into thedigital domain. The transmitter may e.g. comprise one or moredigital-to-analog converters (DACs) for converting a digital basebandsignal, to be transmitted, into an analog signal. Furthermore, thetransmitter may comprise one or more analog and/or digital filters,mixers, power amplifiers, and/or other circuitry for upconverting thatanalog signal to an RF signal and amplifying the RF signal in a mannersuitable for transmission. Such receivers and transmitters are wellknown in the art of cellular communication and are not further describedherein.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the cellular communicationdevice 1 further comprises a control unit 20. The control unit 20 maye.g. be or be part of a digital baseband circuit, such as a digitalbaseband processor. The control unit 20 is operatively connected to thetransceiver 10 for controlling the operation of the transceiver 10.Moreover, the cellular communication device 1 comprises a referencefrequency unit 30. The reference frequency unit 30 is arranged toprovide a reference clock signal, having a reference frequency, to thecellular communication device 1, for instance to the transceiver 10, andpossibly also to the control unit 20, of the cellular communicationdevice 1. The reference frequency unit 30 may e.g. be or comprise acrystal oscillator.

The inventors have realized that when the cellular communication device1 is started up, or for some other reason (e.g. a longer time ofinactivity, or “sleep mode”) is out of synch with respect to theavailable RATs, and requested to search for a cell (e.g. the second cell5) of the second RAT, the frequency synchronization with the cell of thesecond RAT can actually be made faster by first synchronizing with acell (e.g. the first cell 2) of the first RAT, compared with directlyattempting a frequency gridding approach to search for the cell of thesecond RAT. If the cellular communication device 1 first synchronizeswith a cell of the first RAT, without registering to the cell of thefirst RAT, the uncertainty of the reference frequency in the cellularcommunication device is reduced. Taking an LTE cell operating at 2.5 GHzas an example of the first cell 2, the following assumptions are valid.Detecting the PSS/SSS is possible up to frequency error of 1.5-2 kHz.Hence, once an LTE cell PSS/SSS have been reliable detected the residualfrequency error can be expected to be less than 2 kHz. Furthermore,synchronization refinement using the Common Reference Signals (CRS)(pilot symbols) can reduce the residual frequency error down to about500 Hz, at the price of slightly longer synchronization times comparedwith detecting PSS/SSS only. Similar numbers is achieved in if a WCDMAcell is used as the first cell: if the synchronization is based onPSCH/SSCH detection, the residual frequency error is about 2 kHz, and ifthe synchronization is based on CPICH detection, the residual frequencyerror is about 500 Hz. The mentioned residual frequency errors are theerrors at the carrier frequency of the first cell. When searching for acell of the second RAT, these residual frequency errors are thenexpanded proportionally to the ratio between the carrier frequency ofthe second RAT and the carrier frequency of the first RAT. For instance,it is expanded 10 times when the carrier frequency of the second RAT isten times higher than the carrier frequency of the first RAT. By firstsynchronizing to the first RAT, the number of hypothesized carrierfrequencies used in the frequency gridding cell search in the second RATcan be reduced compared with directly attempting a frequency griddingapproach to search for the cell of the second RAT. Even though thesynchronization with the cell of the first RAT takes some time toperform, which has to be taken into account in (or included in) theoverall time it takes to perform the cell search in the second RAT, thatoverall time can nevertheless be reduced compared with directlyattempting a frequency gridding approach to search for the cell of thesecond RAT.

Accordingly, in accordance with some embodiments of the presentinvention, there is provided a cell-search method for the cellularcommunication device 1, which is capable of communicating via the firstRAT in the first frequency band 4, and via the second RAT in the secondfrequency band 7. The method may e.g. be applied when the cellularcommunication device 1 has just been started up and is to perform thefirst cell search after start up. It may also be applied in active modewhen the cellular communication device 1 operates in a discontinuousreception (DRX) mode with very long sleep time (e.g. minutes or hours ofsleep time), which is expected to be available for some use cases inemerging 5G systems. Then the reference frequency unit may have driftedtoo much, and hence a cell search similar to an initial cell search atstartup may be needed. As indicated above, the method may also beapplied when the cellular communication device 1 for any other reason isout of synch with respect to the available RATs, and requested to searchfor a cell (e.g. the second cell 5) of the second RAT.

The method may e.g. be performed by the control unit 20 (FIG. 2),utilizing the transceiver unit 10 (FIG. 2) for receiving signals frombase stations (e.g. 3 and 6 in FIG. 1). According to embodiments of thepresent invention, the method comprises performing a first cell searchin the first frequency band 4 in order to detect a first cell (e.g. thecell 2) of the first RAT, If such a first cell 2 is detected, the methodfurther comprises synchronizing to the first cell, without registeringto the first cell, and determining a reference frequency error estimatebetween a local reference frequency of the cellular communication device1 and a reference frequency of the first cell 2. Thereby, theuncertainty of the reference frequency in the cellular communicationdevice is reduced. Thereafter, the method comprises performing a secondcell search, based on the reference frequency error estimate, in thesecond frequency band 7 to detect a second cell (e.g. the cell 5) of thesecond RAT. Due to the reduction in uncertainty of the referencefrequency in the cellular communication device achieved by synchronizingwith the first cell, a relatively small search grid can be applied whenperforming the cell search for the second cell, which speeds up theoverall search time, even including the time it takes synchronizing withthe first cell. Avoiding registering with the first cell 2 beforesearching for the second cell 5 helps reducing the overall search time,compared with if the cellular communication device 1 would firstregister with the first cell 2 before searching for the second cell 5.Parameters that affect the uncertainty of the reference frequency afterthe synchronization with the first cell 2 may include the type of firstRAT (e.g. 2G, 3G, or 4G), which reference signals have been used forsynchronization (e.g. PSS/SSS, CRS, PSCH/SSCH, or CPICH as mentionedabove), and receiver processing parameters used for synchronizing to thefirst cell 2 (e.g. amount of averaging, or filtering, of the referencesignals).

The term “reference frequency error estimate” when used in thisspecification refers to an entity representing the bounds, ortolerances, within which the frequency error lies, and can e.g.represent these bounds in absolute terms, such as ±X Hz, or in relativeterms, such as ±Z ppm. In some embodiments, such an entity mayexplicitly state the reference frequency error estimate (e.g. ±X Hz or±Z ppm). In other embodiments, such an entity may be in the form of anindex, such as an integer, implicitly indicating the value of thereference frequency error estimate. For example, an index ‘1’ may imply‘500 Hz’ and an index ‘2’ may imply ‘2 kHz’, etc. The determination ofthe reference frequency error estimate can e.g. be based on the type offirst RAT, which reference signals of the first RAT that has been usedfor the synchronization e.g. PSS/SSS, CRS, PSCH/SSCH, or CPICH asmentioned above), and/or receiver processing parameters used forsynchronizing to the first cell 2. The determination of the referencefrequency error estimate can e.g. be performed by means of computationswithin the control unit 20, or can be looked up in a look-up table withpre-computed reference-frequency error estimate values. Suchpre-computed values can e.g. be pre-computed by means of simulations.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating embodiments of the method, which isdenoted with the reference sign 90. The operation of the method isstarted in step 100. In step 110, a cell search is performed in thefirst frequency band 4 in order to detect a first cell 2 of the firstRAT. In step 120, it is checked whether such a first cell 2 is detected.If such a first cell 2 is detected (YES branch), the cellularcommunication device 1 synchronizes to the first cell 2, withoutregistering to the first cell in step 130. In step 140, the referencefrequency error estimate between the local reference frequency of thecellular communication device 1 and the reference frequency of the firstcell 2 is determined, e.g. based on the reference signals and receiverprocessing parameters used for synchronization to the first cell 2 asoutlined above. In step 150 a second cell search, based on the referencefrequency error estimate, is performed in the second frequency band 7 todetect a second cell 5 of the second RAT, and proceeds to step 160 wherethe method 90 is ended.

If no first cell 2 is found in the first frequency band 4 in the firstcell search, another type of cell search can be performed for searchingfor a cell of the second RAT in the second frequency band 7. Forexample, a default reference frequency error estimate may be assumedbased on known tolerances of the reference frequency unit 30 when thereference frequency unit 30 has not been synchronized with a referencefrequency of any cellular network. The method may then compriseperforming a second cell search, based on the default referencefrequency error estimate, in the second frequency band 7 to detect asecond cell 5 of the second RAT. This alternative using a defaultreference frequency error estimate is illustrated in FIG. 3 with theoptional step 170 used in some embodiments. If no first cell has beenfound in step 110, the operation of the method according to theseembodiments follows the NO branch from step 120 to step 170. In step170, the second cell search, for a cell of the second RAT; is performedin the second frequency band 7. The operation then proceeds to step 160,where the method 90 is ended. The frequency grid used in this casecorresponds to the grid used when directly attempting a frequencygridding approach to search for the cell of the second RAT (withoutfirst synchronizing with another cell in a lower frequency band). Due tothe relatively wide (and growing) coverage of existing 2G, 3G, and 4Gnetworks, it is likely that failure to find any first cell 2 in thefirst cell search will be a relatively rare event. It should also benoted that, since the cellular communication device does not registerwith the first cell 3 in step 130, but only synchronizes with it, theset of possible such first cells 2 is not limited to cells with whichthe cellular communication device has a valid subscription tocommunicate over, but can include other cells as well (e.g. cellsbelonging to other operators).

As indicated above, the second cell search may be performed using afrequency gridding approach. Thus, for the case where a first cell 2 isfound during the first cell search, performing the second cell search(e.g. step 150 in the flowchart of FIG. 3) may comprise searching afrequency grid of a set of hypothesized carrier frequencies. The secondcell search can be based on the reference frequency error estimate inthe sense that the frequency location of said frequency arid (i.e. whichfrequencies are included in said set of hypothesized carrierfrequencies) is based on the reference frequency error estimate. As alsoindicated above, for the case when no such first cell 2 is found duringthe first cell search, the second cell search (e.g. performed in thestep 170 of FIG. 3) can in a similar way be performed based on thedefault reference frequency error estimate. Thus, in that case,performing the second cell search (e.g. step 170 in the flowchart ofFIG. 3) may comprise searching a frequency grid of a set of hypothesizedearner frequencies, wherein the second cell search can be based on thedefault reference frequency error estimate in the sense that thefrequency location of said frequency grid (i.e. which frequencies areincluded in said set of hypothesized carrier frequencies) is based onthe default reference frequency error estimate. Qualitatively speaking,the larger the reference frequency error estimate (either the determinedreference frequency error estimate used in step 150 or the defaultfrequency error estimate used in step 170) is, the larger the frequencygrid needs to be.

The reference frequency error can, for example, be represented inabsolute terms, such as ±KHz at the nominal carrier frequency f_(nom1)of the first cell of the first RAT. Let the corresponding referencefrequency error at the nominal carrier frequency f_(nom2) of the secondcell be ±Y Hz. Since the relative error at both those nominal carrierfrequencies should be the same, e.g. ±Z ppm, it follows that

$\begin{matrix}{Y = {X\frac{f_{{nom}\; 2}}{f_{{nom}\; 1}}}} & (1)\end{matrix}$

Thus, if the reference frequency error estimate is determined (e.g. instep 140 in FIG. 3) in absolute terms at the location of the firstfrequency band 4, it follows that the relative frequency location of thefirst frequency band 4 and the second frequency band 7 may need to beaccounted for when determining the frequency location of the frequencygrid used in the second cell search in step 150 (FIG. 3). For example,say that the first band is located around 2 GHz, and aftersynchronization with the first cell, the uncertainty of the referencefrequency at 2 GHz is ±500 Hz, i.e. the reference frequency errorestimate determined for a carrier frequency of 2 GHz is ±500 Hz. Then,as a first example, if the second frequency band 7 is located around 12GHz, the corresponding uncertainty of the reference frequency in thesecond frequency band 7 would be ±500·12/2 Hz=±3 kHz. On the other hand,as a second example, if the second frequency band 7 is located around 30GHz, the corresponding uncertainty of the reference frequency in thesecond frequency band 7 would be +500·30/2 Hz=±7.5 kHz. The secondexample would likely require a wider frequency grid with morehypothesized carrier frequencies than the first example for the secondcell search in step 150 (FIG. 3).

Accordingly, in some embodiments, the frequency location of saidfrequency grid used in the second cell search in step 150 (FIG. 3) isbased also on the relative frequency location of the first frequencyband 4 and the second frequency band 7.

According to some embodiments, the cell search method described abovecan be used as part of a procedure for connecting to a cell of thesecond RAT. Hence, according to some embodiments of the presentinvention, there is provided a method for the cellular communicationdevice 1 of connecting to a cell of the second RAT. The method comprisesperforming the cell-search method 90 described above. Furthermore, ifsaid second cell 5 is detected during the performance of the cell-searchmethod 90 (and with reference to FIG. 3, this could be either in step150 or in step 170), the method comprises registering with the secondcell 5.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating embodiments of the method ofconnecting to a cell of the second RAT. The operation of the method isstarted in step 180, and then proceeds to performing a cell searchaccording to the method 90 described above. In step 185, it is checkedwhether said second cell has been detected during said cell search, andagain with reference to FIG. 3, this could be either in step 150 or step170 (in embodiments that includes the step 170). If said second cell 5has been detected (YES branch from step 185), the cellular communicationdevice 1 registers with the second cell in step 190 (in accordance withregistration procedures defined by a standard of the second RAT), andthe method is ended in step 195. If no such second cell has beendetected (NO branch from step 185), the method proceeds, withoutconnecting to a cell of the second RAT (since no such cell has beendetected), to step 195, where the method is ended. In the latter case,the cellular communication device may e.g. attempt to connect to a cellof another RAT, such as the first RAT, as a fallback, In someembodiments, for example if the cellular communication device 1 iscapable of simultaneous connectivity with cells of multiple RATs, thecellular communication device may register with a cell of the first RATeven if a cell of the second RAT is found during the cell search 90.This may for example be done after or in parallel with the registrationin step 190. As long as this is not performed prior to the searchesperformed in step 150 or step 170 (FIG. 3), such a registration wouldnot negatively impact the overall search time for a cell of the secondRAT.

Above, embodiments of methods for operating the cellular communicationdevice are described. Some embodiments of the present invention, furtherdescribed below, also concern the cellular communication device 1configured to perform any of the methods described above. Thus,according to some embodiments of the present invention, there isprovided a cellular communication device 1, as illustrated in FIG. 2,capable of communicating via a first RAT in a first frequency band (e.g.4 in FIG. 1), and via a second RAT in a second frequency band (e.g. 7 inFIG. 1), which is in a higher frequency region than the first frequencyband. According to these embodiments, the control unit 20 is adapted toperform a first cell search in the first frequency band 4 in order todetect a first cell 2 of the first RAT. The control unit 20 is furtheradapted to, if such a first cell 2 is detected, synchronize to the firstcell 2, without registering to the first cell, to determine a referencefrequency error estimate between a local reference frequency of thecellular communication device 1 and a reference frequency of the firstcell 2, and thereafter perform a second cell search, based on thereference frequency error estimate, in the second frequency band 7 todetect a second cell 5 of the second RAT.

As has been described above in the context of embodiments of the method90, the control unit 20 may be adapted to, in order to perform thesecond cell search, search a frequency grid of a set of hypothesizedcarrier frequencies, wherein the frequency location of said frequencygrid is based on the estimated reference frequency error.

As has also been described above in the context of embodiments of themethod 90, the frequency location of said frequency grid may be basedalso on the relative frequency location of the first frequency band 4and the second frequency band 7.

Furthermore, as has also been described above in the context of someembodiments of the method 90, including the step 170, the control unit20 may be adapted to, if such a first cell 2 in the first frequency band4 is not detected, perform a second cell search, based on a defaultreference frequency error estimate, in the second frequency band 7 todetect a second cell 5 of the second RAT.

In accordance with what has been described above in the context of themethod illustrated in FIG. 4, the control unit 20 may be adapted to, ifsaid second cell 2 is detected, register the cellular communicationdevice 1 with the second cell 2.

FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram illustrating some embodiments ofthe control unit 20. As illustrated in FIG. 5, these embodiments of thecontrol unit 20 comprises a first RAT cell-search unit 200 forperforming cell searches in the first RAT, a first RAT synchronizationunit 210 for synchronizing with cells of the first RAT, anerror-estimate determination unit 220 for determiningreference-frequency error estimates, and a second RAT cell-search unit230 for performing cell searches in the first RAT.

The first RAT cell-search unit 200 is adapted to perform said first cellsearch in the first frequency band 4 in order to detect a first cell 2of the first RAT.

The first RAT synchronization unit 210 is adapted to, if such a firstcell 2 is detected, synchronize to the first cell 2, without registeringto the first cell.

The error-estimate determination unit 220 is adapted to determine saidreference frequency error estimate between said local referencefrequency of the cellular communication device 1 and said referencefrequency of the first cell 2

The second RAT cell-search unit 230 is adapted to perform said secondcell search (corresponding to step 150 in FIG. 3), based on thereference frequency error estimate, in the second frequency band 7 todetect a second cell 5 of the second RAT.

The second RAT cell-search unit 230 may be adapted to, in order toperform the second cell search, search a frequency grid of a set ofhypothesized carrier frequencies, wherein the frequency location of saidfrequency grid is based on the estimated reference frequency error. Insome embodiments, the frequency location of said frequency arid may bebased also on the relative frequency location of the first frequencyband 4 and the second frequency band 7.

In some embodiments, the second RAT cell-search unit 230 may be adaptedto, if such a first cell 2 in the first frequency band 4 is notdetected, perform a second cell search (corresponding to step 170 inFIG. 3), based on the default reference frequency error estimate, in thesecond frequency band 7 to detect a second cell 5 of the second RAT.

As indicated in FIG. 5, the control unit 20 may in some embodiments alsocomprise a second RAT registration unit 240. The second RAT registrationunit may be adapted to, if said second cell 2 is detected, register thecellular communication device 1 with the second cell 2.

In some embodiments, the control unit 20 may be implemented as adedicated application-specific hardware unit. Alternatively, saidcontrol unit 20, or parts thereof, may be implemented with programmableand/or configurable hardware units, such as but not limited to one ormore field-programmable gate arrays FPGAs, processors, ormicrocontrollers. Thus, the control unit 20 may be a programmablecontrol unit. Hence, embodiments of the present invention may beembedded in a computer program product, which enables implementation ofthe method and functions described herein, e.g. the embodiments of themethods described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. Therefore, accordingto embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a computerprogram product, comprising instructions arranged to cause theprogrammable control unit 20 to perform the steps of any of theembodiments of said methods. The computer program product may compriseprogram code which is stored on a computer readable medium 300, asillustrated in FIG. 6, which can be loaded and executed by saidprogrammable control unit 20, to cause it to perform the steps of any ofthe embodiments of said methods. In some embodiments, the computerreadable medium is a non-transitory computer-readable medium.

Embodiments describe herein enables relatively quick cell searches inRATs operating at relatively high carrier frequencies, e.g. in the orderof 10-30 GHz. An alternative solution to enable relatively quick cellsearches could be to use a reference frequency unit, such as a crystaloscillator, with a higher intrinsic accuracy in the cellularcommunication device. However, that solution would likely be morecostly, so in comparison with that alternative solution, embodiments ofthe present invention can provide a lower cost. Another alternativesolution to enable relatively quick cell searches could be to perform aparallel cell search, where the cell search is performed for severalhypothesized carrier frequencies simultaneously. However, that solutionwould likely require more complex signal processing increasing the costeither in terms of the power consumption or the required chip area (orboth), so in comparison also with that solution, embodiments of thepresent invention can provide a lower cost.

The present invention has been described above with reference tospecific embodiments. However, other embodiments than the abovedescribed are possible within the scope of the invention. Differentmethod steps than those described above, performing the method byhardware or software, may be provided within the scope of the invention.The different features and steps of the embodiments may be combined inother combinations than those described. The scope of the invention isonly limited by the appended patent claims.

1. A cell-search method for a cellular communication device capable ofcommunicating via a first radio-access, technology (RAT) in a firstfrequency band, and via a second RAT in a second frequency band, whichis in a higher frequency region than the first frequency band,comprising: performing a first cell search in the first frequency bandin order to detect a first cell of the first RAT; and if such a firstcell is detected: synchronizing to the first cell, without registeringto the first cell; determining a reference frequency error estimatebetween a local reference frequency of the cellular communication deviceand reference frequency of the first cell; and thereafter performing asecond cell search, based on the reference frequency error estimate, inthe second frequency band to detect a second cell of the second RAT. 2.The method according to claim 1, wherein performing the second cellsearch comprises: searching a frequency grid of a set of hypothesizedcarrier frequencies, wherein the frequency location of said frequencygrid is based on the reference frequency error estimate.
 3. The methodaccording to claim 2, wherein the frequency location of said frequencygrid is based also on the relative frequency location of the firstfrequency band and the second frequency band.
 4. The method according toclaim 1, comprising: if such a first cell in the first frequency band isnot detected: performing a second cell search, based on a defaultreference frequency error estimate, in the second frequency band todetect a second cell of the second RAT.
 5. The method according to claim1, wherein the first frequency band is located below 4 GHz and thesecond frequency band is located above 10 GHz.
 6. The method accordingto claim 1, wherein the first RAT is any of a 2nd generation (2G)cellular communication RAT, a 3rd generation (3G) cellular communicationRAT, and a 4th generation (4G) cellular communication RAT.
 7. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the second RAT is a 5th generation, 5G,cellular communication RAT.
 8. A method for a cellular communicationdevice capable of communicating via a first radio-access technology(RAT) in a first frequency band, and via a second RAT in a secondfrequency band, which is in a higher frequency region than the firstfrequency band, of connecting to a cell of the second RAT, comprising:performing the cell-search method according to any preceding claim; andif said second cell is detected: registering with the second cell.
 9. Acellular communication device capable of communicating via a firstradio-access technology (RAT) in a first frequency band, and via asecond RAT in a second frequency band, which is in a higher frequencyregion than the first frequency band, comprising: a control unit adaptedto: perform a first cell search in the first frequency band in order todetect a first cell of the first RAT; and if such a first cell isdetected: synchronize to the first cell, without registering to thefirst cell; determine a reference frequency error estimate between alocal reference frequency of the cellular communication device and areference frequency of the first cell; and thereafter perform a secondcell search, based on the reference frequency error estimate, in thesecond frequency band to detect a second cell of the second RAT.
 10. Thecellular communication device according to claim 9, wherein the controlunit is adapted to, in order to perform the second cell search, search afrequency grid of a set of hypothesized carrier frequencies, wherein thefrequency location of said frequency grid is based on the estimatedreference frequency error.
 11. The cellular communication deviceaccording to claim 10, wherein the frequency location of said frequencygrid is based also on the relative frequency location of the firstfrequency band and the second frequency band.
 12. The cellularcommunication device according to claim 9, wherein the control unit isadapted to, if such a first cell in the first frequency band is notdetected, perform a second cell search, based on a default referencefrequency error estimate, in the second frequency band to detect asecond cell of the second RAT.
 13. The cellular communication deviceaccording to claim 9, wherein the first frequency band is located below4 GHz and the second frequency band is located above 10 GHz.
 14. Thecellular communication device according to claim 9, wherein the firstRAT is any of a 2nd generation (2G) cellular communication RAT, a 3rdgeneration (3G) cellular communication RAT, and a 4th generation (4G)cellular communication RAT.
 15. The cellular communication deviceaccording to claim 9, wherein the second RAT is a 5th generation (5G)cellular communication RAT.
 16. The cellular communication deviceaccording to claim 9, wherein the control unit is adapted to, if saidsecond cell is detected, register the cellular communication device withthe second cell.
 17. (canceled)
 18. A nontransitory computer readablestorage medium having stored thereon a computer program productcomprising computer program code for executing a cell-search method whensaid computer program code is executed by a programmable control unit ofthe cellular communication device, wherein the cell search method is fora cellular communication device capable of communicating via a firstradio-access technology (RAT) in a first frequency band, and via asecond RAT in a second frequency band, which is in a higher frequencyregion than the first frequency band, comprising: performing a firstcell search in the first frequency band in order to detect a first cellof the first RAT; and if such a first cell is detected: synchronizing tothe first cell, without registering to the first cell; determining areference frequency error estimate between a local reference frequencyof the cellular communication device and reference frequency of thefirst cell; and thereafter performing a second cell search, based on thereference frequency error estimate, in the second frequency band todetect a second cell of the second RAT.